Resolute

by Alicia Rades

  I started toward him, prepared to rush into his arms, but Ronark grabbed hold of my wrist and pulled me back. I just about clocked the guy in the jaw, but then I caught the look in his eyes.

  He lowered his voice. “You’re being watched, remember?” He glanced around like he might spot a sniper somewhere in the trees. “If you recognize one of them, the last thing you want to do is let the vamps know.”

  Good point. My heart ached as I stood there, staring out into the small crowd at Venn. My knees shook, as if they wanted to make their way over to him despite my commands for them to stay put. Venn’s expression was full of pain, sorrow, and relief, but he remained still. I knew he did it for the same reason that I continued to stand at Ronark’s side. But I spotted something soft in his eyes—something I’d seen so many times throughout my lives that it spoke to me in a way words couldn’t.

  I bit down hard on my lower lip to keep my emotions at bay. He was like a magnet drawing me to him, and keeping my distance was literally causing me physical pain.

  Jenna helped guide the newcomers to their respective cabins, separating them by numbers like livestock. When I saw that Venn was headed our way to fill the empty bed in Ronark’s cabin, I nearly toppled over right then and there. My heart pounded so wildly in my chest that I thought the vamps might be able to hear it from the other side of the island.

  “In, you two,” Ronark instructed.

  I couldn’t get into the privacy of the cabin soon enough. As soon as Ronark shut the door behind us, I fell into Venn’s arms.

  “You’re here!” I cried. I stood on my toes and pressed my lips to his before he could get in a word. Heat pooled in my belly, and my heart pummeled against the inside of my chest. My hands roamed all over him—up his arms, over his back, and in his hair. I had to check that he was there in flesh and blood, that he was real. And by the hands of all that were holy, he was.

  I gasped when he drew away, trying to catch my breath. Venn gazed down at me as tears rolled down his cheeks. He looked at me like he was staring into the eyes of a deity—like he couldn’t believe I was standing there in front of him.

  “God, Rae. I missed you so much it nearly broke me.” Venn’s voice was like a song, a beautiful, wonderful song. He pulled me back into an embrace and buried his face in my hair, inhaling my scent like he craved it more than anything else in the world. We rocked from side to side as he held on to me with such tender loving care. “I was so worried about you.”

  I let my tears soak into the front of his t-shirt. “I can’t believe you’re here.”

  “I can’t either,” he whispered in my ear, his voice cracking. My spine tingled, but in a good way. “But it’s really me. I swear.”

  “I don’t mean to interrupt your… reunion,” Ronark said. I’d barely remembered he was there. “So I’m going to go.”

  I heard the door creek open and then shut, but I didn’t take my head off Venn’s chest. I just wanted to hold him until the end of time.

  “You shouldn’t have come,” I finally said. “It’s dangerous here.”

  “I know.” He drew away from me to look me in the eyes again. Tears stained his cheeks. “That’s exactly why I had to come.”

  Swoon.

  “Why?” I whispered. “Now you’re stuck on this island with the rest of us.”

  Venn took a deep breath. “I know. It was reckless and impulsive.”

  I chuckled, mostly because the emotions tearing through me had left me overwhelmed. “It sounds like some of my personality is rubbing off on you.”

  Venn smiled. “Yeah, it might be. I just couldn’t handle not knowing what had happened to you.”

  We stood there in silence for several minutes, just wrapped in each other’s arms. Finally, I spoke.

  “Do you have any plans for getting off the island?” God, I hoped he wasn’t as stupid as I was. “Because clearly my plan didn’t work.”

  Venn dropped his gaze. “I’m still working on that.”

  “Yeah, me too. How’d you get here?” I asked.

  He shrugged. “I ran into some trouble along the lakeshore.”

  “When you say ran into trouble, you mean sought out the Soulless,” I accused lightly.

  Venn smirked. “It was the only way to find you. I traveled from bar to bar until I found a guy with the mark on his wrist. I had a little bar fight and… let them take me.”

  “Venn,” I said breathlessly. “You shouldn’t have. Did they hurt you?” He looked okay, at least.

  He shrugged. “They got a couple of good punches in, but that was almost a week ago already.”

  “A week? Where have you been all this time?”

  “Detained,” he answered vaguely. “Until they put us all on a boat and brought us here.”

  My heart sank. “They don’t know who you are yet, do they?”

  He shook his head. “No, I don’t think so. As far as they know, I’m just some random guy.”

  I hugged him tighter, even though all I wanted to do was yell at him for being reckless. Then again, I shouldn’t exactly be the one to talk. What he did was incredibly noble, and I was glad he was here with me now.

  “I’m sorry,” I whispered after a brief silence.

  Venn ran his fingers through my hair. “Sorry for what?”

  “For leaving.”

  He pressed his lips to the top of my forehead, warming my skin. “I’m just glad I found you.”

  I wiped the tears from my eyes. “Why did you come?”

  Venn’s eyes searched mine, like he couldn’t tell what I was feeling. “I came for you.”

  “But… aren’t you mad at me?”

  His eyebrows knitted together. “Mad?”

  I nodded. “For leaving without telling you.”

  Venn sighed and led me across the cabin to sit on the lower bunk. “Honestly, Rae, I was upset and a little hurt when you left.”

  I knotted my hands together in my lap. “I’m a terrible girlfriend, aren’t I?”

  “No,” he answered.

  “But… we’re supposed to be soulmates. And I just… left.”

  Venn tilted his head in question. “I don’t think you understand. Being soulmates isn’t an easy way into a relationship. It doesn’t mean we’ll be perfect. It just means that we have a strong connection. It’s what we do with that connection that matters. The connection dies if we don’t nurture it.”

  He wrapped an arm around my shoulder, and I leaned into him, absorbing what he said. I’d never had to work on a relationship before. I’d just assumed they either worked out or they didn’t.

  “We’re a team, Rae,” Venn whispered. “Being part of a team takes a lot of work.”

  I nodded as what he said began to sink in. “I’m glad we’re part of the same team.”

  “Me, too.” Venn drew away from me to look me in the eyes.

  Slowly, he leaned down until his lips were hovering just millimeters away from mine. That split second before the kiss, all the anticipation leading up to it, was everything. My breath caught in my chest, and my heart lifted until it felt like my entire body was floating.

  Then his lips connected with mine, and I completely forgot I was on Gregor Island, surrounded by hundreds of the most ruthless vampires in the world. All that mattered were Venn’s lips on mine and his words echoing in my head. We’re a team, Rae.

  I’d be damned if I let my team fall apart.

  For the first time, I was starting to get a sense of what Jenna meant when she said that even when we’ve given up hope, there was still a chance.

  “Venn.” I drew away, panting. I pressed my forehead to his and gazed down at our entwined fingers.

  “Rae,” he whispered back. I loved hearing him say my name.

  “Are you scared?” I asked.

  “Absolutely.” He wasn’t even afraid to admit it, and that, I felt, took a level of courage I didn’t have. I admired him so much for it. “Every day I was without you, I was terrified.”

  “Me,
too,” I whispered, closing my eyes. A knot formed in my chest. It was harder to admit than I thought. “I know I’m the Ravenite and I’m not supposed to be afraid of anything, but I am, Venn. I’m just as scared as everyone else.”

  “Hey,” he said lightly, pulling my chin up. “That’s okay. Remember what Sondra said? It’s okay to feel fear. It’s how you use it that matters. I know you, Rae, and I know you’ll use it to fuel your determination.”

  Determined. Resolute. Hell yeah, I was!

  I nodded as the knot in my chest began to loosen, as if his words had the power to unravel my unease. All the hopelessness I’d been collecting suddenly seemed irrelevant.

  In that moment, Genevieve’s words came back to me. You should know that there’s always more than one way off an island.

  Did she know this was going to happen? She couldn’t have.

  But there had to be something to what she said. Jenna had been trying to convince me of it for days. There was another way off this island. There was a chance to retrieve the dagger again. We could do this. Together.

  “I’ll use my fear wisely,” I promised.

  Venn took my face gently in his hands, guiding my gaze to his. “I know you will.”

  I lifted my chin to brush my lips across his mouth again. It felt so good, like being in his arms was where I was meant to be—like we were meant to face all of this together. I just wished I could show him how much I loved him.

  My hands found their way under his shirt, and I ran them up the bare skin on his back. His fingers tangled in my hair, and he pulled me in until I crawled onto his lap. My whole body shook against him. In that moment, it was as if Venn and I were alone in the world—like there weren’t any vampires outside our cabin and we weren’t facing a war with impossible odds.

  Just us, I repeated to myself, feeling as if time had come to a standstill and the statement was irrevocably true.

  I tugged at Venn’s shirt until he drew away from me just long enough for me to pull the shirt up over his head. A moment later, his lips were on mine again as my hands roamed his body. I lifted my arms and grabbed hold of the top bunk to steady myself. Venn took my shirt off and tossed it onto the floor. Gently, he wrapped his arms around me and lowered me to the bed. I grabbed for the sheets and pulled them down as we both kicked our shoes off.

  Venn’s hands found the skin above my waistband and began inching their way up my body. His lips left mine to trail down my neck and to my bra strap lying across my collarbone. I gasped as tingles of excitement spread their way across my skin. Heat pooled between my thighs, and my heart pounded so hard I could feel it shaking my entire body.

  “Are you sure about this?” Venn whispered against my shoulder.

  I’d never been surer about anything in my life. Yeah, most people might’ve waited until all of this was over, until they were sure they were safe, but for me, safety was a luxury. Somewhere between all the vampire slaying, I had to live my own life… which I hadn’t allowed myself to do in years. I might as well start sooner than later.

  “Yes,” I breathed, pulling him in closer to me and planting a passionate kiss on his lips. “Venn, I love you.”

  “There’s no rush,” he said.

  I couldn’t help but smile. No one had ever treated me with such tender care before. “I know.”

  “There will be plenty more opportunities when we make it out of here,” he continued. “If you’re only doing this because you think we won’t—”

  “I’m not,” I assured him. “I want to do this. My life is crazy, Venn. That’s not slowing down anytime soon.”

  He smiled.

  “Unless you don’t want to…” I started.

  “Rae,” he said like I was being ridiculous. “I’ve never wanted to be with anyone more than I want to be with you.”

  Tears pricked at my eyes again. How’d I find such a wonderful man? My voice came out a mere whisper. “Then be with me.”

  Venn’s lips came down on me again, and I inhaled a sharp breath. Reaching his hand beneath me, he undid my bra and tossed it aside. My chest heaved as his hand roamed over the swell of my breast. I wanted more. So much more.

  My fingers trailed down to undo his belt. He kicked his pants off, then unbuttoned mine beneath the sheet. Venn’s bare legs were warm against mine, and it only made me want him more. I didn’t even know that was possible. My thighs burned for him.

  “Please,” I begged in his ear.

  “Please what?” he asked, teasing me.

  I could hardly get the words out past my shallow breaths. “Please. I want to be yours forever.”

  “You will. I promise.”

  He sealed the promise with a kiss, then relaxed into me. We gasped in unison. I thought it would hurt, but it didn’t. It felt warm and comforting… and right.

  “Venn,” I moaned as he moved against me. Fire raged through my veins.

  He pressed his lips to the sensitive skin just below my ear, sending a wave of pleasure down my spine. My breath caught as he pressed into me faster. I squeezed my eyes shut tightly and sank my teeth into his shoulder to keep quiet.

  Venn took shallow breaths as his lips roamed over me. His fingers fisted in my hair, and he claimed my lips for his own. His tongue slid inside my mouth, and he kissed me with a passion I’d never felt before. My fingers clawed at his exposed back. He pulled away to kiss my neck, then nipped at my breast.

  “Oh my God,” I whispered. I couldn’t help but let the words slip out of my lips. Being with Venn was unlike anything I’d ever experienced before. It felt like I’d stumbled upon a magical object capable of harnessing all the pleasure from the world and channeling it into myself. It felt so good I thought my heart might burst into a million tiny little stars. Nothing—and I mean nothing—could compare to the way I felt when Venn touched me. His skin on my skin… it was like Synchrony itself had blessed me with all the magic in the world.

  Venn’s hand moved up my side, to my breast, and then down again, until finally landing between my legs.

  “Oh God!” I cried into his shoulder as he gently massaged me.

  My chest heaved beneath him as that magical force built within me until it burst, sweeping through my body like strong waves crashing into a rocky shore. I barely took a breath before he was thrusting against me in a way that made those waves stronger and fiercer. Holy hell, it made it even better.

  Venn fell onto his back beside me, panting. Curling up, I rested my head on his shoulder and snuggled into him.

  “Venn?” I asked through shallow breaths.

  He wrapped both arms around me. “What?”

  “After that, I feel like I can do anything.”

  15

  I woke up several hours later in Venn’s arms. I hadn’t even realized we’d fallen asleep. I rolled over and scooped my clothes up from the ground and began putting them back on. Venn shifted on the bed beside me. I looked over at him and beamed.

  He smiled back. “Hey, beautiful.”

  “Hey.”

  He reached for me to drag me back into bed, but I just squeezed his hand and said, “Your roommates probably want to get back in here at some point to sleep.”

  Venn nearly jumped out of bed at the mention of his roommates.

  I chuckled. “How much you wanna bet Ronark took one look at the pile of clothes on the floor and headed straight back outside?”

  “My bad,” Venn said.

  My eyes roamed over him as he pulled his pants back on. Images of what we’d done just this morning flickered through my head, and I couldn’t help but smile even wider.

  “Ronark?” Venn asked. “Is he that guy from earlier?”

  “Yeah,” I said. “He’s friends with my sister. He’s going to help us get out of here.”

  Venn slipped his t-shirt on and turned to me. “How is she? Your sister?”

  “Alive and healthy,” I answered, which was all I could ever really ask for. “You saw her last night.”

  “The one with th
e short hair?” he asked as he sat down beside me.

  “That’s her.”

  “She kind of looks like you,” he observed.

  I shrugged. “Yeah, well, we are related.”

  He laughed and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. “I’m glad you found her.”

  I leaned my head against him. “Me, too.”

  “Should we let my roommates back in now?”

  I nodded and stood, then headed to the door. When I swung it open, I found Ronark sitting just outside. He turned to gaze up at me.

  “Sorry,” I said.

  “Nah.” Ronark stood and waved a hand like it was nothing. Then he leaned in close to whisper, “I would’ve done the same thing.”

  “Uh, thanks. Hey, Venn, do you want to grab something to eat?”

  Ronark’s eyes went wide. “Wait. That’s not what you were doing in there?”

  I slugged him in the shoulder. “Shut up.”

  Venn chuckled from behind me.

  “Watch this girl,” Ronark said lightheartedly, holding on to his shoulder. “She’s one tough cookie.”

  “Hell yeah, I am. Now get some sleep.” I waved to Ronark as Venn and I started down the dirt path.

  “Hey,” he called. “If you see Brad or Dawson, let them know they can come back.”

  “Will do,” I told him. “Thanks for standing guard.”

  Ronark gave me a salute, then turned inside his cabin.

  “He seems nice,” Venn said once we were alone.

  “Yeah. I can see why my sister likes him.” I quickly changed the subject. “How’s everyone else doing? Fiona’s all right, isn’t she?” I missed her.

  “Yeah, last I heard.”

  I opened the door to the bathhouse, which had a kitchen off one of the rooms where we could grab food whenever we wanted. I lowered my voice in case anyone was inside. “Last you heard? When was that? Have they made any headway on finding Matias or his successor?”

  “I’m not sure. Remember, I ran into the Soulless not long after you left. I’ve had no way to contact everyone.”